October 10, 2008

West suburban Republican U.S. Rep. Peter Roskam is facing a political newcomer with comparatively little campaign money and no TV presence, yet he is spending money on a new ad blitz in an attempt to tie his foe to unpopular Gov. Rod Blagojevich and convicted political fundraiser Tony Rezko.

A campaign spokesman insists Roskam is not concerned ahead of the Nov. 4 election, just being aggressive.

"We don't take any opponent lightly. Any person who puts their name on the ballot is a credible opponent," spokesman Matt Vriesema said.

Before Democrat Jill Morgenthaler of Des Plaines had the chance to introduce herself to 6th Congressional District voters, Roskam is trying to do it for her.

October 07, 2008

Mitt Romney, the former Massachusetts governor and Republican presidential candidate, is coming to DuPage County to help U.S. Rep. Peter Roskam raise campaign cash in advance of the Nov. 4 election.

According to an invite mailed to potential donors, Romney will come appear at a $1,000-per-plate private dinner at the Oak Brook Marriott on Oct. 21. The Roskam campaign is hoping the event will raise $100,000.

September 30, 2008

The two candidates for a west suburban congressional seat mixed it up on abortion and ethics Tuesday, with Democrat Jill Morgenthaler accusing her opponent of harboring extreme conservative views and Republican Rep. Peter Roskam highlighting her previous role as a top aide to embattled Gov. Rod Blagojevich.

Meeting before the Tribune's editorial board, Morgenthaler, 54, of Des Plaines, criticized Roskam for co-sponsoring legislation that would define life as beginning at conception. She said such a move would limit a woman's ability to have a child through in-vitro fertilization—something Roskam denied.

Morgenthaler, a retired U.S. Army Reserve colonel, also blasted Roskam for co-sponsoring another measure that would prohibit the sale of sexually explicit material from being sold on military bases.

"I've served with these young, brave people," Morgenthaler said. "We count on them to make such great decisions every single day, yet we're going to take away their right to choose what they want to read?"

September 19, 2008

Two years ago when he was but a candidate in a tight race with Iraq War veteran Tammy Duckworth to replace Henry Hyde in Congress, Peter Roskam agreed to debate at the College of DuPage, where a thousand people showed up to listen.

This time around, however, it is congressman, not candidate, Roskam of Wheaton and so far he seems reluctant to grant this fall's opponent, Democrat Jill Morgenthaler of Des Plaines, a chance to debate.

The Elmhurst League of Women Voters announced this week that they were canceling a debate planned for next month in the 6th Congressional District race because Roskam would not commit to it.

Succeeding former Republican House Speaker Dennis Hastert in the 14th Congressional District, Foster collected $517,000 from April through June. That was more than five times the nearly $93,000 raised in the same time period by Republican Jim Oberweis, who lost to Foster in a special election.

Ahead of the November election, however, Oberweis had more in his campaign fund—$547,000 to Foster’s $443,000—thanks to loaning $640,000 of his own money. Oberweis, a dairy magnate and investor, has spent $4.1 million, and Foster, a retired Fermilab physicist, has spent $3.4 million in the district dating to last year.

February 21, 2008

The head of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee hit the Chicago area Thursday offering optimism the party would win three Republican seats in Illinois this fall.

Rep. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland ticked off the following races:

*10th Congressional District. Van Hollen suggested Dan Seals of Wilmette could unseat incumbent Congressman Mark Kirk of Highland Park. This is a rematch from 2006 in which Seals got 47 percent of the vote in a stronger-than-expected showing.

Seals won a primary earlier this month in convincing fashion. Kirk, however, has been raising campaign cash at a rapid clip and Seals won't have the element of surprise this time.

*11th Congressional District. Van Hollen said state Sen. Debbie Halvorson of Crete should be considered a favorite over New Lenox Mayor Tim Baldermann, a Republican, in the seat being vacated by Jerry Weller. Halvorson had raised four times as much as Baldermann as of last month in a district that Weller easily won over the years before questions arose about his Nicaraguan land dealings, his wife's investments and his relationship to an indicted defense contractor.

*6th Congressional District. Van Hollen also said he thinks retired Army Col. Jill Morgenthaler of Des Plaines can do what nationally-promoted Iraq war veteran Tammy Duckworth could not two years ago: defeat Republican Peter Roskam of Wheaton for the seat long held by Henry Hyde. Morgenthaler, however, has yet to garner the widespread national support from Democratic luminaries that Duckworth did in losing a close contest during what was a big Democratic year in 2006.

While in town, Van Hollen attended an event for Seals Thursday morning, an event for Halvorson Thursday afternoon, and a fund-raiser for Democrat Bill Foster of Geneva Thursday night.

Foster is running against Republican Jim Oberweis in a March 8 special election to fulfill the remaining term of retired House Speaker Dennis Hastert in the 14th Congressional District.

“The fact that the 14th is very much in play and Bill Foster has made it a race is news in itself,” said Van Hollen.

A Barack Obama presidential candidacy can only help Illinois Democrats, Van Hollen said.

“The energy and the enthusiasm is on the Demcratic side. I think with either candidate (Obama or Sen. Hillary Clinton) you are going to get huge turn out. There’s no doubt you have a local effect, just as there is a local effect in New York (for Clinton),” Van Hollen said.

January 30, 2008

A retired Army colonel has her sights set on freshman U.S. Rep. Peter Roskam (R-Ill.), but first she must survive a Democratic primary challenge.

Jill Morgenthaler, 53, of Des Plaines said her background, which includes 30 years in the Army Reserve and service in the Iraq war, as well as her connections to the 6th Congressional District, makes her an ideal candidate.

“I think the basic values we have out here have been lost in Washington,” Morgenthaler said.Morgenthaler’s opponent in Tuesday’s Democratic primary is Stan Jagla, 45, of Roselle, a former truck driver and business consultant.

The district, which encompasses much of DuPage County and parts of Cook, leans Republican. Conservative icon Henry Hyde represented the district for 32 years. Should Morgenthaler win the primary, it would set up a contest similar to 2006, when Roskam, then a Republican state senator, defeated Iraq war veteran Tammy Duckworth, a Democrat, by just 3,000 votes.

All 50 aldermen on the Chicago City Council had to file paperwork earlier this year detailing their outside income and gifts. The Tribune took that ethics paperwork and posted the information here for you to see. You can search by ward number or alderman's last name.

The Cook County Assessor's office has put together lists of projected median property tax bills for all suburban towns and city neighborhoods. We've posted them for you to get a look at who's paying more and who's paying less.

Past posts

Clout has a special meaning in Chicago, where it can be a noun, a verb or an adjective. This exercise of political influence in a uniquely Chicago style was chronicled in the Tribune cartoon "Clout Street" in the early 1980s. Clout Street, the blog, offers an inside look at the politics practiced from Chicago's City Hall to the Statehouse in Springfield, through the eyes of the Tribune's political and government reporters.